VHF Handhelds

[FrankC]

We use an ICOM for I need help use and FRS radios for communication between my wife and myself. Would not need the FRS if she did not have the habit of wandering off out of my sight so often. Turn my back, and she gone

Whatever you get, buy waterproof.

[krash]

Waterproof is a must, floating is better for sure. SH has a 3 year water-proof warranty.
Don;t be fooled by the water-proof warranty's, it says 30 minutes at 3 feet but that does not mean 45 minutes at 1 foot or even sloshing around on the floor.

VHF seems to work pretty well for us even whne not exactly in sight, Line of Sight does not mean you have to be able to see the person, we can communicate OK with each other I have SH and Vivian has Icomm (I think) without issue even when one of us is behind a point or in a creek.
FRS radios work too for simple communication but don;t you need matching sets ? I think some of the FRS sets for hunters also do some sort of location of each other similar to the VHF's GPS/DSC.

16 and 9 are monitored by the CG, SeaTow, TowUsa... and the local salvage guys, Ideally for safety you want the GPS/DSC that will transmit your location especially in an emergency.
68 to 72 is what we typically use for bs communications.

I'm 63 and have a very bad ticker with a built in defibrillator, safety is a concern but if I go down its not likely I'll be able to use the radio.

[FrankC]

If you match channels on FRS you should be able to talk just fine, say from one side of the lagoon at Ft. D to the other. My wife loses an average of one a trip down there, so we often use mismatched radios. (We will have that lagoon paved in a few years.) If she doesn't drop the radio, she ends up in the water, but please do not remind her when I am around. Get salt water in one and it gets very hot very fast. Toss that sucker immediately.

An antenna on a handheld VHF will do wonders, and the CG monitors with very tall antennas. You can get a short rubber ducky antenna if the radio is equipped for an accessory antenna. Strap one on a paddle and you would be surprised at the range. We carried one on our larger boat which came in handy once with a broken antenna. Must have been a rouge wave, as I always travel slow and steady

In case of a medical emergency, you should have one available.

[TerryW]

Because I often fish alone in my kayak or Hewes, I bought a SH HX851. It is not tiny, but it is submersible and floats. Plus, it has a GPS thing with a distress button. My previous SH was small, submersible and I loved that thing. It took a lot of abuse for 5 years but even with a new battery it doesn't work very well.

[no time]

John, Try this one.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001J5 ... r_asin_lnk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Skeeter]

Here is a charger and cord to fit your Horizon 270 for $28.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/FNB-V94-Battery ... 2ec712c35d" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bicoastal]

I'll be purchasing my first handheld within the next couple of weeks. Been looking around and came across the Cobra HH500. Really like the bluetooth feature so i can answer calls without taking my phone out of the dry box. Anybody have experience with this radio?

[vivian]

I bought this one on sale from west marine and have used it on two recent trips

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/st ... pXymH-9KSM" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

My older Uniden did not have the alkaline battery tray and since the radio is discontinued, can't find replacement battery so a new radio was ordered. Never again will I buy a radio without alkaline battery tray option. On my long canoe trips of 10 days need a second battery.

We tested the radio while in a creek that had a dense canopy. My friend had same VHF (we bought two) and was in the bay. Using the mid range option 2.5 watts was able to communicate. Using the 5 watt the communication was crystal clear. The next weekend I tested it on the sea grape canal while my friend had taken off to check out some ponds but was still in another tunnel. Using the 6 watt boost we could communicate. Note that the alkaline battery tray would limit transmission to 2.5 watts.

I am pretty impressed with the transmission since we have never been able to communicate while in mangrove tunnels with standard or uniden VHF. I suspect that technology might be making advances in this area.

The west marine brand has a 3 year on waterproof, etc. plus, I can just take it to neighborhood store and deal with a real person instead of being on hold for non existent customer service I got from uniden. For the price, less than $150 it is a great deal on floating,waterproof, 6 watt option.

[JoeS]

I am with you Vivian, I bought a Uniden hand held and within a year the battery died and would not hold a charge......After COUNTLESS hours on hold waiting for a Customer Service rep they told me nothing they could do about it buy a new battery.......the new Battery cost as much as the Radio.......Last Uniden Product I will ever buy.....

[Todd]

The VHF offered under the West Marine name is a Uniden radio.

[Rik]

That radio Vivian bought from West Marine is made by Uniden. It is the Uniden MHS126 Marine Radio with a West Marine name tag on it.

http://www.uniden.com/marine-electronic ... vt/mhs126g" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It is a whole lot easier to walk into West Marine if you have a problem instead of dealing with Uniden's suspect customer service over the phone, though. I had a West Marine branded radio made by Uniden and it crapped out within 3 months. Transmit button quit working. Walked into West Marine and then walked out with a new radio within 10 minutes. I'd probably still be on hold if it had been a Uniden product.

[krash]

That West Marine VHF160 radio is on sale now for $129.99

[jaeforceone]

I use a UNIDEN MHS125. Bought it for about $100 at the time, but now it is slightly more expensive.

[BigFlyReel]

I did a review a while back of the Icom M24 Float n Flash radio.

http://paddle-fishing-forum.com/viewtop ... 32&start=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;